Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Deep Fried Turkey

   If you haven't had it, you are missing out.  If you are scared to do one, I don't blame you.  There has been so many horror stories about people who fry turkeys.  Just be prepared, follow our instructions, and enjoy the most moist, delicious way to cook your Thanksgiving bird.






Ingredients:

1 Turkey
3 tblsp Cajun seasoning
4 cups of injectable marinade (store bought is fine)
5 gallons of peanut oil

Optional marinade recipe:
1 cups melted butter
1 cups of olive oil
2 tblsp garlic salt
1 tblsp black pepper
2 tblsp creole (Cajun) seasoning

Whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl and keep at room temperature until use.


Tools:
A large single propane burner
Large aluminum pot (turkey frying or steam pots are one in the same)
Turkey frying stand
Thermometer
Fire Extinguisher

Start by making sure your bird is completely thawed.  Frozen Turkey equals disaster.  In your back or front yard, on a level surface away from any structures, fill your pot 3/4 of the way with the oil.  Heat till 375 and immediately reduce the heat.  Inject the Turkey in the breasts, wings, thighs, an legs on both sides.  Do this by pushing the needle all the way in, and slowly removing it while pushing in the marinade. Dry rub the turkey with the Cajun seasoning, making sure no water or moisture is on the outside of the bird.

Place the turkey on the stand, and slowly lower into the oil with something that will keep you far away from the oil.  Once the turkey is submerged, regulate the heat to keep it no lower than 350 and NO higher than 375.  You will want to cook the turkey for 4 minutes per pound.  (Note: Never leave the turkey alone, as you will have to regulate the heat often)

Once you have reached the desired time, remove the turkey from the oil slowly and turn off heat.  Let place the turkey on a cookie sheet with paper towels to strain excess oil.  You can check the temperature of the meat with a thermometer and if it is 175 you are good.  If not, you can put it in the oven at 375 till you reach that temperature.  Let stand for 4-5 minutes before cutting into it.  Serve

Clean up the oil by letting it cool, and with a strainer and a funnel, you can put it back into the bottle it came in, and re-use it.  Peanut oil has a very high burn point, so you are able to get quite a few uses out of one bottle.

OK, sounds complicated, but it is easy, fast, and will give you the best possible result for a moist Turkey that will let you use the gravy for your potatoes.  




3 comments:

DMSorensen said...

Hi. I love you blog and have tried some great recipes form you guys already. We just had fried turkey from my brother in law and it is amazing. HE did soy sauce marinade in one and bbq in the other. Maybe next year we'll recommend this one. I just wondered what you mean by regulate and turning down the heat. He was showing us how it worked and said we should turn off the flame completely when we are lowering the turkey so any oil that spills over won't hit flame. Of course, he had it measured great so that didn't happen. But those fryer scare me so I thought I would ask you guys how you did that.

anniebakes said...

this looks fab-u!!

anne

Clements Family said...

Absolutely you can turn off the flame, we just turn down the oil low because when you drop the turkey into the fryer the oil temperature drops immediately. So turning off the flame is always an option as well.